Letter to the Bank of England (20-Nov-1999)

You may recall that I wrote to you on 12th February this year to question the continuing absence of Charles Darwin from the reverse side of a British bank note. I should like to thank you for the useful background information you provided regarding the choice of historical figures for depiction on your notes.

You will be pleased to learn that I have been giving the matter much thought, and have decided to launch a campaign (under the aegis of The Friends of Charles Darwin) to gain Darwin recognition on one of your notes. The year 2009 will see the bicentenary of Darwin's birth and 150th anniversary of the publication of On the Origin of Species (the 140th anniversary, incidentally, is today*). This would seem like the ideal opportunity to celebrate the great man (in the same way that, on the current £50 note, you celebrated the 300th anniversary of the Bank of England with a picture of the totally unheard-of Sir John Houblon).

To assist me in my campaign, I wonder if you would be kind enough to provide some additional information regarding your notes, viz:

When is the current E Series of notes scheduled for completion, and who will be celebrated on the remaining ones?

Are there any plans for an F Series, and, if so, who will choose the people to be depicted on them?

Is there a recognised procedure for members of the public to nominate people for inclusion on bank notes?

In the event of a new monarch's succession to the throne, will a new series of notes be initiated?

Has any consideration been given to freeing up more space for additional worthies on bank notes by removing the monarch's head (or, as I like to think of it, Doing a Cromwell)?

Finally, I should like to extend the invitation for you to become a member of The Friends of Charles Darwin. There is no cost or commitment involved - other than allowing your name to be added to the list of people who would like to see Charles Darwin recognised on a bank note. In return, you will be allowed to append the initials F.C.D. (Friend of Charles Darwin) to your name whenever you feel it appropriate (e.g. when signing the forthcoming Charles Darwin bank note).

On 14 May 1856, Charles Darwin recorded in his journal that, on the advice of his friend Charles Lyell, after almost 20 years exploring the subject, he had finally begun writing a ‘sketch’ of his ideas on species.

To mark Charles Darwin’s 211th birthday, some thoughts on his 1871 classic, The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, an unlikely anecdote about a snail, plus all the usual book reviews and links to Darwin-related news stories.